What if I were there?
by AriaOfTheDead
Summary: She ran. Her breathing laboured, her thighs aching, her vision hazy. But none of that mattered. All that mattered was getting out, getting out of this damned forest. She could only rest when the trees parted, the sun shined and the large, dull sign of The Motor Inn was just ahead. This is the story of Tamara, a teenage girl who is just a person trying to survive.
1. An unwelcome arrival

She ran. Her breathing laboured, her thighs aching, her vision hazy. But none of that mattered. All that mattered was getting out, getting out of this damned forest. She could only rest when the trees parted, the sun shined and the large, dull sign of The Motor Inn was just ahead.

"GET BACK HERE YOU FUCKING BITCH!" one of her pursuers spat in his rough voice. The bandits were still trying to shoot her from afar with their terrible aim.

"TURN BACK AROUND AND LET US FINISH WITH YOU, YOU FILTHY SLAG!" another yelled his voice coarse from years of smoking, before the world went to shit. She was almost out, she had to be. God knows how long she had been running for but she had the gut feeling that was nearing the end. '_Just a little longer_ 'she repeated to herself in her mind, forcing herself to believe it. She lifted her head to see the clearing of the forest, finally she was out.

At first she looked round the territory of an unknown group seeing; two children a girl with curly black hair the same shade as her own and a little boy with short brown hair and freckles, a man with dirty blonde hair who had just appeared from behind the fence, another guy around fifty and had a well groomed moustache, considering the circumstances, tampering with a RV and finally a woman with deep-brown hair and scowling hazel eyes on top of a rusted RV with a rifle pointed at the outsider's forehead.

"Don't shoot!" she exclaimed her voice cracking a little. Lily reluctantly lowered her gun glowering coldly at the teen from the forest. She had black tangled hair and wore fingerless gloves, a black crinkled shirt that only stopped at mid-thigh, a beige, bloodied tank top, a beige pattern skirt ripped down the side for easier movement and black thermal tights. She also had a noticeably large shoulder bag.

"Who are you and what do you want?" Lilly snapped still scowling. Some new faces had appeared from the inside of the inn. A black man with short cut hair and a goatee appeared alongside another guy with black hair and glasses and finally a woman with messy blonde hair walked out of the RV and joined the man with the remarkable moustache.

"The name's Tamara and I can give you food on the condition that you let me into your group." The teen said regaining her composure.

Lilly was just about to say something when Kenny walked up to the gate.

"Let's see what yer got, the name's Kenny by the way," he held out his hand intending for Tamara to pass over the bag. "The woman by the RV is my wife- Katjaa and the little boy is my son Duck." He said in country accent.

"Yeah, su—" she was cut off by the brunette.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa what the hell do you think you're doing Kenny? It's not just your decision on whether we let someone. What if she's not trustworthy? What she puts that crossbow she's got on her back right at your forehead!" she questioned Kenny putting more and more hate into every word.

"Well excuse me Lilly but I was just getting more food for the rest of the group!" Kenny retorted spitefully. Lee walked up to the two squabbling adults, a judgemental look on his face.

"Lilly at least let the girl inside so we can deal with this in safety." Lee said wearily almost as if he had dealt with this situation a million times before. Tamara gave a thankful look at Lee as he opened the gate without anyone else's consent. She hastily took off her shoulder bag and handed it to Lee.

"That's got all the food in it." She said calmly and gave Lee a nod.

"Lee, Lee, Lee, LEE!" Lilly spat looking super pissed at Lee's actions. "What the hell do you think you're doing? Letting her in like that." She turned her head to Tamara who had already sat down and was chatting with Clementine. "In a matter of seconds she could slit that little girl's throat, just you watch." Lilly rowed furrowing her brow. Lee just shook his head at Lilly's remark and took it upon himself to check the supplies Tamara had offered. He was soon joined by Kenny. They unanimously agreed that Tamara should stay. Why not?

Kenny walked over to Tamara looking a little fed up.

"Alright kid ya in the group…" he sighed "But one last question, can yer do anything useful?" he said in a waiting-for-the-worst tone.

"Well… I can hunt, so I'd be useful when all that food I gave you runs out. And I know where most of Bandit's save lots are in case anyone gets kidnapped." She replied looking over to Duck and Clementine. Kenny's eyes widened as if he never realized it was a possibility that Duck could get kidnapped. He gave one last nod and resumed his business with RV.

Tamara knelt beside Clementine and asked "Is there anyone you reckon is cool and anyone I should avoid?" Clementine looked up from the picture she was drawing and gave a refreshing smile.

"Doug and Mark are nice so you should talk to them but you should avoid Larry, he's not very nice to Lee or Kenny." She replied retaining that refreshing air.

"Thanks sweetie." Tamara replied gratefully. Before wondering off she ruffled Clementine's hair to show some gratitude towards her help. It really was great having children around in such dark times.

"So you're Mark, right?" Tamara asked sheepishly. She didn't like to talk to new people and it was a miracle she had kept her composure up 'til now.

"Yup, and you?" he confirmed, braking out of his train of thought. He held out his hand for a handshake. Tamara stared awkwardly at his hand not realizing what it was for. A few moments later she realized what Mark was waiting for and bashfully shook his hand.

"I-it's Tamara." She stuttered.

"Nice to meet you." He concluded before going to discuss issues with Lee. '_Just one more person to meet. I'll avoid Larry.'_ She thought to herself as she walked towards Doug. He was fiddling with circuits and wires next to the gate.

"And you must be Doug." She stated trying to put on a brave smile; it didn't work it looked more sadistic than brave. Ignoring the smile he replied.

"Yup, and you?"

"It's Tamara. What's that you're working on?" she inquired. She wasn't the best at it but she knew quite a bit about circuits and wiring as she always had to fix her own computer, WII and PS3 plus her dad taught her the ropes when he had to remove the screen off her DS when she was younger. If you had to classify Tamara she was a gamer. Doug looked up at her happy that someone actually gave a damn about what he did.

"It's a warning system. I've set a wire round the perimeter of the Motor Inn so if anyone touches it this bell here" he pointed to the bell hung on the wooden gate "Would ring. It's still in its development phase though." He explained.

"That's cool. Need any help?" she asked wanting to be of some use.

"Are you sure you can be of any help?" responded doubting her skills.

"Hey! I used to upgrade and fix my computer all the time before dead people came up from their graves." She replied a little offended by his doubt. He turned back to his work while Tamara stood there waiting for an answer. He smiled to himself and finally said "Okay you're in."

Finally Tamara felt welcomed in this survival group and the crowd of 9 at the Motor Inn grew to 10. They say there's safety in numbers however the more people the higher the chances of betrayal…


	2. A leg for a life

Two months had passed since the new arrival. Things were steady, a routine was established and everybody stuck by it. Even the bickering between Kenny and Lilly became seldom. But that only lasted for a _**month.**_ Nobody expected the walkers would starve them out. Lilly's lottery didn't help either. It was a system Lilly had made up where everybody had an 'equal' chance of getting food. Even the kids. And that's what pushed Kenny off the edge. The amount of quarrelling had gone from two polar opposites. It was Kenny who started all the arguments, it was Kenny who made all the invalid points, and it was Kenny who only thought about his family. Sometimes Tamara thought what was to become of him if Duck and Katjaa died, it's a horrible thought.

However, the depleting amount of food was the main problem at the Motor Inn. That's what Mark, Lee, Kenny and Tamara were out trying to fix today. They had ventured out in pairs to hunt whatever remains of wildlife the ravenous undead had left untouched.

Lee raised his fire axe ready to strike a walker that was feeding on a meal the group could've had. Mark just sat back and watched as Lee struck the back of the head of the senseless walker.

"Dang it, what'd it get this time?" Mark sighed tired of seeing the same picture over and over again.

"Ugh, looks like a rabbit…" Lee replied in the same tone.

"That's another meal lost," Mark grieved before moving on ahead with Lee. "I still can't believe we went through all that commissary food in three months. It felt like so much at the time. We even had Tamara's food on top of that."

"Maybe you shouldn't have opened the door."

"Yeah, except I would probably be food by now. Trust me I have no regrets."

"A rabbit's hardly a meal Mark but I'd take it. We're all hungry."

"No kidding."

"Last night I heard your friend Doug lying in bed just naming types of pie. It was driving me nuts; I think he's starting to lose it."

"He's not the only one; Clem caught Tamara in bed hugging her crossbow like a teddy. What I'm saying is you should cut them some slack."

"Yeah you're right. I wish I knew for sure how much food we had left."

"Not enough. According to Lilly we've just about hit the bottom of our food supply; some people might have to go without tonight."

"You mean Lilly's lottery again? Kenny is going to be pissed."

"She thinks everyone should have an equal chance of missing a meal."

"You think Kenny and Tamara are having any more luck than we are out here?" Mark asked, changing the subject.

"I sure hope so." Lee said hopefully looking up to his left.

"Yeah, between the lack of food and Kenny Lilly fighting all the time things are getting pretty tense back at the Motor Inn. You know Kenny's been talking about taking off if he can get that RV running again."

"He's got a wife and kid to look out for." Lee replied trying to defend Kenny.

"And they're safest in a big group. Going out on his own will get them all killed. Can't blame him though, did you hear Larry going off on him last night? What's the old guys deal anyway? It seems like he's got a problem with you in particular." Mark looked up in a glimmer of hope as a crow flew past and landed in a nearby tree.

"He thinks I'm a danger to the group, and Clementine!" Lee spat giving his opinion about Larry.

"I think he's the one putting us in danger. The way Lilly worries about his health, I wouldn't be surprised if she was skimming rations for him; like she took the whole of Tamara's backpack and saved it just for him. And I know she thinks he's getting weaker by the day, but the guy's all muscle… He's a walking pile-driver. I know I wouldn't wanna be stuck in a room with him. And didn't he punch in the face one time?" Mark asked as Lee walked a little ahead of him.

"Knocked me flat," Mark observed another crow land on a closer tree and decided to go for that one. He ran forward a little and ducked behind a rock Lee close behind. Mark aimed the rifle; looking down the scope. "It's a long shot. I'd hate to waste the bullets." Lee advised Mark.

"Trust me, if I don't think I can hit it; I won't shoot." He took a few more second to adjust his sights and pulled the trigger. Unfortunately he missed by an inch and the bird flew away startled by the noise.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRR RRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGH HHHHHHH!" a gut wrenching cry pierced through the normally tranquil forest and alerted Lee and Mark.

"Shit! Was that Kenny?" Mark panicked.

"I don't know! Come on!" Lee exclaimed urging Mark to start moving. The duo sprinted through the forest, not resting until they got to the source of cry. They rushed into a scene where two high school boys, around seventeen, were trying to free what presumably was their teacher from a bear trap that had latched onto the man's leg. One was short and had black hair and freckles, the other was tall, had brown air and had stubble around the lower portion of his face.

"Jesust Christ…" Mark sighed as he revised the scene. Travis turned around to see where the remark came from turning to see two grown men; one with a rifle the other with a fire axe. Travis's eyes widened as he felt threatened by Lee and Mark. His friend - Ben – turned around and instantaneously put up his hands, terrified.

"Oh shit! No, no. Please don't kill us! We just want to help our teacher! We'll leave, I swear!" Travis panicked, trying to act professional.

"Lee! You guys okay?" Kenny asked before looking over to his left.

"Holy shit!" Tamara exclaimed in terror, shifting her eyes through the scene.

"Get it off! Get it off me, God dammit, Get it off!" the teacher wailed in pain. He cupped his hands round his to see if it could ease the pain. It was to no avail.

"Travis, maybe they can help!" Ben questioned his friend in desperation.

"These might be the same guys that raided out camp and… We barely got away from that!" Travis proclaimed.

"What guys?" Mark asked in confusion.

"Why the fuck is there a bear trap in a forest?!" Kenny questioned, obviously having different priorities than everyone else.

"I don't know man!" Ben squeaked in frustration.

"Who raided your camp?" Tamara and Lee asked unanimously.

"I-I don't know man, guys with guns!" Ben stuttered still intimidated by the two rifles, the fire axe and the crossbow.

"Please! We won't bother you I swear!" Travis diverted, trying to keep the 'professional' act up.

"Lee this is fucked up! We gotta help 'em!" Mark declared.

"PLEASE!" Ben begged. Travis shrivelled up his face, taking annoyance to Ben's helplessness, his pleading.

"Ben shut up! My dad was in Special Forces I know what I'm doing!" Travis snapped at Ben. Tamara couldn't help but snigger at Travis's remark. He retaliated by giving her a look full of venom, which shut her up.

"Just see if you can get him out! After that you can leave us or whatever, I don't care! Just get him out!" Travis shook his head at Ben's continual pleading, as if what he'd just said went straight his brain.

"We gotta get him out of there!" Lee determined, answering all of their prayers.

"Oh God, thank you!" the teacher thanked. Tamara shook her head at that remark. The only solution she saw was cutting the man's leg off.

"Fine but you gotta hurry." Kenny stated.

"Hurry… Please hurry…" the teacher repeated, just wanting to get the damn thing off his leg. Tamara looked up to catch a glimpse of a walker shuffling past.

"Lee, this trap has been altered. There's no release latch!"

"Guys quickly, walkers are coming!" she warned, still looking around looking around to see if there were any closer dead walking bodies. Travis turned around at her warning to see walkers coming from all directions, shambling along in a grotesque form.

"Mark get the boys back! Kenny keep those walkers off of me!" Lee knelt to observe the teacher's leg realising the only solution.

"You have get him out… You HAVE to!" Ben squealed, a terrified look on his face.

"All that blood and screaming is just attracting more of them!" Kenny complained still on a completely thinking path than everyone else.

"I'm just going to have to cut you out…" Lee sighed.

"NO, no! Try the trap again! Anything please!" the teacher refused.

"Lee do something!" Kenny urged.

_First strike._

A scream of agony bursted from the teacher.

_Second strike._

Ben stood back watching the blood spray in terror.

_Third strike._

Travis watched from afar, trying to hold his sick back.

_Fourth strike._

The man's leg was set free from the jaws of the clamp. Travis ran up trying to be brave, only to run back again and hurl.

"Is he okay?" Mark asked in disgust.

"He passed out." Lee replied, disappointed.

"If he's alive, grab him and let's go!" Kenny yelled, worrying about the walkers. Mark leant down and picked up the one legged man. Mark and Kenny started to leave the amputation site.

"BEHIND YOU!" Lee shouted at Travis, who had just finished hurling. The walkers were approaching him in their slow paced way. Travis began screaming and slowly backed away. Tamara instinctively ran to his side, abruptly grabbed his wrist and yanked him away. Her hand slid down to his to get a firmer grip and she began to sprint, not even thinking to let go. She led him through the forest, not resting until she reached the gates of the Motor Inn. Ben and Lee were close behind, running for their lives aswell. The gates were open from Kenny and Mark's return so she didn't have to wait for Doug and others to slowly drag them open. She felt super accomplished, pleased, happy for herself for saving a life. But the extra life was not welcomed by everyone…


	3. We are all dead

**Hey guys, sorry I haven't written an 'authors note' on the last two chapters. Just to confirm, when Tamara arrived in the group it was between Episode 1 and Episode 2 :D. I would appreciate it greatly if you could please review my story as it would give me a few things to work on. **

**Thanks for reading!**

Tamara hunched over, desperately trying to recollect her breath. Exhausted she stumbled through the gates her hand over her chest.

"Who the hell are these people?!" Larry roared, directing his anger at Lee.

"Don't have time to explain." Lee retorted.

"Lee! Are you okay?" Clementine asked in her innocent voice.

"Get him into the truck, I'll sort him out." Katjaa offered for the teacher, holding Duck in a protective hug.

"Kat, can you fix him?" Kenny questioned the abilities of his wife.

"Jesus Ken! I-." she was interrupted by the demands of Lilly.

"Lee! Lee!" she hollered trying to get his attention. Lee turned to Lilly angrily but looked to Kenny expecting an argument from him. Doug stood behind looking between Lee and Lilly. "What the hell!? You can't just be bringing new people here! What the hell are you thinking!?" she continued venomously.

"Hey, do you wanna calm down for a fucking minute?" Kenny requested.

"Watch your mouth!" Larry nit-picked, pointing his finger at Kenny.

"No I don't, I want to know why you thought bringing more mouths to feed was a good idea?!" Lilly interrogated, following her logic; a one that lacks humanity.

"He would've died if we left him!" Lee tried to reason.

"So what?" Larry spat. He hadn't a care for anyone apart for himself and Lilly.

"We are NOT responsible for every struggling survivor we come across! WE have to focus on OUR group. Right here. Right now." Lilly stated, putting her hand down in a strop.

"Come on Lilly. These are people! People trying to survive just like us. We've got to stick together to survive!" Tamara protested. Mark nodded his head in agreement. Normally she would've kept quiet in a situation like this, but to her this wasn't right. Lilly shot a look of rage at her not appreciating the fact that a teenager was arguing with her.

"The only reason you're here is because you had food. But that food is almost gone, we've got maybe a weeks' worth left. And I don't suppose you guys are carrying any groceries, are you?!" directing her gaze at the two boys. Travis shot a vicious look at Lilly then shook his head.

"Um, no." Ben shrugged, scared shitless of Lilly.

"Fine you guys fight it out then. Welcome to the family kids." Mark asserted before turning a cold shoulder.

"Come over here and see what I drew." Clementine tugged on Ben's sleeve. It was moments like these when you realise Clementine is smarter than she looks.

"Yeah it's better not to get involved in these fights." Tamara sighed, flowing Clementine's lead. She suddenly realised her hand was still firmly locked in Travis's. She flinched and gave him an awkward stare, her face bright red, before abruptly letting go. The three of them moved towards Clementine's drawings that were sprawled across the floor. They had just settled down before Kenny decided to continue this dispute.

"You know, you like to think that you're the leader of this little group, but we can make our own god damn decisions. This isn't your own personal dictatorship!" for once Kenny had a good point.

"Hey I didn't ask to lead this group. Everyone was happy for me to be distributing the food when there was enough to go around, but now it's running out, suddenly I'm a god damn Nazi!" she retaliated. Lee could see Doug shake his head in the background.

"It doesn't matter who's in charge! Those people are here now. I guess we have to decide what happens next." Lee stated trying to calm them down.

"No, Lee it does matter! ONE person can't be in charge of EVERYTHING!" Tamara didn't like the way he emphasised on some words. It sounded like he wanted to be the leader, this was just another power struggle. "You know, it might feel safe for you to sit on the fence but sooner or later you're going to have to decide whose side you're on!" Kenny concluded, finally walking away.

"I don't see any of you stepping up to make the hard decisions. My daughter has got more balls than any of you combined!" Larry declared, trying to get the last word. The three teens couldn't help but burst out in laughter after that statement.

"Whoa, she has more than two?" Tamara joked, earning a giggle from Ben and a snigger from Travis.

"How many is that anyway?" Travis sneered before counting in pairs for every guy in the group. "That's like sixteen!" he chuckled. Lilly watched them in disgust before turning away.

"Dad, please. Why don't you go help Mark with the wall?" Larry trudged away, making sure to shove Doug on his way over. Doug looked behind him, terrified before going back to working on his alarm system.

"You think this is easy for me?! Everyone hates me because I'M the one that rations the food. But NOBODY else wants to!" Lilly stormed off towards the food bag, Lee following her in pursuit. "You know what? I'm not doing it tonight. You do it. Here are today's food rations but there's not enough for everyone. Good luck." She declared using mood whiplash. She shoved the four items of food into Lee's hands before storming off. Lee looked at the food, complicated decisions going through his mind. He got stares from everyone all longing for one bit of food. He knew it was important to feed the kids, so that's where he started.

"Here Clem, you need something to eat." Lee said with a smile. He glanced down at his food before choosing to give her half an apple.

"Oh thanks, I love apples! Are there anymore?" she asked eagerly.

"No, that's the last one," Lee said gravely. Clementine sighed and looked down, pondering on whether she should eat it or not. "Don't worry it's all yours." He reassured before making his next decision. He then gave food to Duck, Mark and Tamara who shared it with the boys.

"So, what school did you guys go to?" Tamara asked, starting a little small talk.

"Stone Mountain." Travis replied abruptly, ruining the tone of the conversation.

"Have you guys had to kill a walker yet?" she asked changing the subject.

"A few, Ben hasn't killed any yet. What about you?" Travis answered. She looked down not wanting them to read her face. It's not that she felt bad about killing them, as if they were still people but it was the familiar faces that got to her. It was knowing that someone close to you was dead that was what got to her and smashing their brains in didn't help.

"Too many." She finally said. She was about to say something else when she was interrupted by this pleas of Katjaa.

"Kenny, Lee come over here please!"

"He didn't make it did he?" Kenny asked darkly.

"He lost too much blood." Katjaa said glumly. Ben's heart sank after hearing the news. He buried his head between his knees, not wanting anyone to look at him. Travis just shook his head a dismal look on his face.

Their grieving was interrupted by a scream Katjaa and a guttural growl from a walker. The ghoul had clamped it's hands around her face and shoulder trying it hardest to pull her back into its jaws.

"SHIT KATJAA!" Lee yelled whilst trying to wrench its greedy hands away from her. "The axe! Hurry!" he managed to shout before the monster clutched onto his shoulders pulling him into the pickup truck. Mark tried to swing at it but he missed getting the axe wedged into the car. It was Tamara's turn to act. She ran up to Lee once he had fallen out of the truck, placed the end of the crossbow on the back of the monster's head and pulled the trigger. Blood splattered on her ripped skirt, just adding to the amount that was already on there. Lee pushed the 'twice dead' body off of him as Tamara retrieved her bolt from its head.

"Thanks." He said, regaining his composure.

"No problem. We can't lose you." She said flatly. Travis had just noticed to rip in her skirt, his face getting redder and redder the more he stared at it. Ben picked up on his friends reddening state and followed his line of sight. One he realised what it was he flicked his friend between the eyes for being such a pervert.

"Why did you bring him here in the first place asshole?!" Larry barked a Lee.

"Dad, calm down." Lilly intervened.

"You're going to get us ALL killed!" he continued, red with rage.

"You said he wasn't bitten!" Kenny yelled at Ben. Travis instantly broke out of his phase; nobody yells at him or his friends like that.

"He wasn't fucking bitten!" he retorted aggressively.

"Well you're "NOT bitten" friend here came back to life and tried to kill my wife!" Kenny retaliated. Travis was just about lose his temper when Ben placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Wait, Trav. They might not know." He warned before letting his friend continue.

"What the hell are you talking about?" Kenny snapped.

"Well dick wad, since you're so stupid to not figure this out I might as well tell you. It's not the bite that does it. You come back no matter how you die. If you don't destroy the brain that's just what happens. It's gonna happen to all of us, especially idiots like you!" Travis said firmly, making sure to put as many insults as he could into his explanation.

"We're all infected… Everyone?" Lee asked still reviewing what Travis had just said.

"Probably. What I'm saying is that I've seen people turn who I know were never bitten." Travis confirmed.

"What he says is true. My sister – Sophie – couldn't take it anymore. She took a lot of pills, more than the recommended dose. I saw her dead on the toilet but moments later she reanimated and tried to kill me. I had to bash her brains in with a hammer, like the rest of my family." Tamara said stepping up, her voice weakening by every sentence. She looked up to see everyone's glum faces, even more saddened by her story.

That's when the bells rang. Strangers from the woods were approaching the Motor Inn. Who could they be? What could they want? Are they friendly or are they hostile? All these questions running through everyone's minds and all could be answered in one day.

**Thanks for reading again and I hope you enjoyed this chapter. The next one is called 'bitter, sweet, bitter." See you there!**


	4. Bitter, sweet, bitter

Everybody got into formation. They had a routine, Lilly made them practice it every so often. Tamara whispered to the boys o get down and follow her. Everyone lined up behind the front fence.

"Who're those people?" Lilly spat at Ben, expecting him to answer. Tamara shuffled over a little to let him see through the cracks of the fence, but he put his hand on her shoulder anyway so he could lift himself up a little higher. She shuddered at the touch but got used to it.

"I-I don't know!" he stuttered, a little intimidated.

"Are they the people who raided your camp?" Lee stepped in.

"I don't think so. They all had their faces covered so I don't know." he replied doubtfully.

"There's just two of 'em. We need to make a stand" Kenny demanded, disobeying all rules. Ignoring Lilly's glares Kenny made a stand and readied his rifle. Another mumble came from the two strangers. "That's far enough!" Kenny shouted.

"Oh shit! Okay, okay… No problem!" the larger one replied startled. They both put up their hands revealing two petrol containers.

"We don't want any trouble." Lee chimed in.

"Of course, neither do we. I'm Andy St. John and this here is my brother, Dan. We're just out looking for some gasoline. Looks like you guys have the Motel locked down, which is fine, but if you can part with any extra gas we'd be much obliged." Andy surrendered. Lilly looked to the side a little confused by the need of gas.

"What do you need gas for?" she asked finally, giving up finding an answer for herself.

"Our place is protected by an electric fence. Generators provide the electricity…" Danny said awkwardly. He obviously didn't have any social skills, his voice sounded so eerie.

"Our generators run on gas." Andy finished, filling in his brothers explanation. Doug's ears perked up when he heard 'electric fence' but he was too shy to ask any questions. "Look, we own a dairy farm a few miles up the road. If ya'll be willing to lower your guns we can talk about some kind of trade." Andy offered, getting a little scared of the gun that was pointed at his face.

"How ya'll doing on food? We got plenty at the dairy." Danny asked nervously. Mark instantly turned to Lee, letting his belly do the talking. Lee looked down reviewing the offer. After all, it was a hard decision on whether to go to the dairy. Lilly stood in confusion for a minute before ordering Lee to go check the dairy out. Doug offered for himself to go, just improve the numbers.

"We'll bring some gas to your dairy. In exchange you give us some food to give back. We'll see how it goes from there." Lee declared, accepting the deal.

"Seems fair. A couple gallons should power one of our generators for a while." Andy confirmed, a sweet smile on his face. Tamara shook Ben's hand off her back and walked up to Lee.

"I think I should go too. I'll know if they're leading us into a trap or anywhere dangerous since I know the woods. The boys too; they might recognise who raided their camp on the way." Tamara volunteered. Lee nodded at her offer and so she packed her bag and grabbed her beloved crossbow. She picked up the handgun, which she never used, as she had an idea for it. Travis.

"Alright, you two are coming with us, we might run into the people who raided your camp this way. Also, Travis you know how you said your dad was in Special Forces, did he teach you how to use a gun?" she asked, holding out the hand gun. Ben just looked down. He hadn't even been in this group for a day and the people already knew Travis was better fit for this brutal world.

"Actually he did. You giving this to me? Don't you need it?" Travis rejected, not taking ownership of the gun yet.

"Nope, I've got my crossbow. Besides I'm useless with a gun." She explained placing the silver gun in his hands.

"W-what about me?" Ben stammered weakly. Tamara froze for a minute, running out of ideas on what she could give him. She pulled her back pack off of her back and rummaged around for anything remotely useful. Fortunately, for Ben, she managed to find a meat cleaver at the bottom of her rucksack.

"Thanks." He said miserably before Lee called the three of them over. The group had left to follow the brothers to the St. John dairy.

"So, this dairy… You guys really have food?" Mark asked, starting a new conversation. Ben walked ahead with Mark and the St. Johns whilst Travis and Tamara lagged behind.

"Why does Ben act all depressed all the time. I know all of us have gone through a lot of bullshit but he seems the worst?" Tamara asked Travis quietly.

"I think it's the fact that the girl he was completely in love with died first. Jenny Pitcher. What's worse is that she came back and gave most of our classmates the chomp." He whispered back, taking a step closer to her to make sure she could hear._ Luke Caddick. _It was a name that came into her mind for he was the man who Tamara had fell completely in love with. Just thinking about him being dead made her fell empty inside, that she'd lost all purpose in life. He'd moved to Savannah so she didn't see him regularly, but when she did it was the best times of her life. Both Travis and Tamara noticed that Danny would keep turning around to gaze at Tamara, each time with a corrupt look on his face. That's when Mark mentioned Lee and the brothers stopped to talk to him._ Shit that means he's behind me and he can see the rip in my skirt _she thought to herself, making her feel uncomfortable. Travis took note of that and guided her to Doug who was left alone at the back.

"Hi Doug." She said as she approached him.

"Hi Tam, I noticed you've got a Zelda rucksack." He replied trying out his new nickname for her.

"What, oh yeah it's cool. I used to use it for school back in the day. Oh and you can use that nickname if you like. It's what my dad used to call me." She established.

"Tam… That does make your name a lot shorter." Travis joined in with a smile for once.

" Yup, it does Trav." She said casually, shortening his name.

"What are you giggling about Trav?" Ben said, deciding to join in.

"You think you're gonna cut me out of this!?" a shout echoed from the forest. Tamara recognised the voice instantly.

"Fucking bandits." She muttered under her breath. She couldn't forgive them for what they did to her. Rape is rape after all. She lucky to get away before they did anything too serious.

"Shit, get down." Andy whispered to everyone. Everyone crawled to get a better look at what was happening. A fued was going on between two bandits. Something about taking food.

"Those look like the people who raided our camp." Ben said shakily whilst Travis nodded his head in agreement.

"Who are they?" Lee asked a little worried.

"Fucking rapists is who they are." Tamara spoke up, boiling in anger. Travis and Ben gave her a concerned stare before looking back at the fight. Things had intensified. The man in the ski mask had gotten angrier, almost ready to kill.

"FUCK YOU!" Ski mask hollered before shooting the other guy in the head 3 times. "Asshole." He stated before walking like nothing had happened.

"The world out here has gone to shit. Come on, let's get to the dairy where it's safe." Andy sighed, shaking his head. It was another 20 minute walk along the forest but they got to the dairy safely.

It was beautiful. A large peaceful house, a pretty, red barn and a massive field. Just looking at the place was refreshing, it was really worth protecting. Doug bent down to take a look at the fence, admiring it's power. Meanwhile, Andy explained how the fence worked to the rest of the group. Their mother came out of the house to greet the new arrivals, her also having a strong Georgia accent.

"I though I saw ya'll with company coming down the drive." She said heartily, welcoming everyone. "I'm Brenda and welcome to the Dairy!" She introduced herself.

"This here is Lee. He's from Macon!" Andy introduced happily, pointing at Lee.

"A couple of our old farmhands were from Macon, They grow 'em good there." Brenda said, as if people were equivalent to livestock.

"They've got a few more friends staying at the old Motel." Danny chipped in.

"Oh my gosh, that place is pretty vulnrable. Have you got anyone with survival experience leading your group?" she said concerned, not knowing how easy it is to survive. Just food and shelter and of course sturdy walls.

"Kenny's working on getting us somwhere safer… He doesn't think the Motor Inn will stay safe forever." Lee explained.

"Sounds like a smart man." She said happily, liking Kenny's logic. "Now that ya'll are here, we'll make sure you're safe and comfortable." She concluded.

"Does that offer apply to the rest of us?" Lee asked just to be sure.

"We're starved!" Doug exclaimed.

"These are for ya'll, baked fresh this morning." Brenda said bringing out a basket full of biscuits.

"Holy moly!" Doug chirped, having not seen so much food in a while. He grabbed the basket, his hunger getting the best of him. Mark and Lee glared at Doug as he ate a biscuit.

"Sorry." He muttered, crumbs flying out of his mouth.

"You can't get stuff like that anymore, not without a cow for milk and butter, that's for sure." Danny commented.

"That's right. Hopefully Maybelle will get over whatever this bout she's got and be with us for a good-long while." Brenda explained.

"Your cow is sick? What she—" Lee was cut off my Mark.

"We have a vet! We cold bring her here! We can help you folks out." Mark offered exitedly.

"A vet! Oh my! Our prayers have been answered!" Brenda said flabberghasted.

"Maybe our whole could come over… For the day…" Mark suggested. Doug and Lee looked at eachother, not liking the way Mark was taking things.

"Well how about this, ya'll go get tour vetinary friend, and I'll prepare some dinner. A big meal for all you hungry souls. It'll be nice to have some folks to help out around here again. Danny, why don't you come and help me out in the kitchen." Danny nodded before wondering into the house.

"Why don't I head back with the food and round everybody up for the trip back here." Doug offered for his services.

"You might wanna take someone with you. Remember, those roads can be dangerous." Andy reminded them of the encouter in the woods with the bandits.

"No problem. Ben can come with me." Ben looked at Travis, not wanting to be separated from the ony person he can trust. Travis gave him an empathetic look back before nodding, reassuring Ben that he would be fine. Mark handed Doug a rifle to keep them safe. Tamara gave a look at Doug, as if saying be careful to him. After saying goodbyes Ben and Doug departed th dairy. Tamara started to wander off to the back of the barn and indicated for Travis to follow. Before long, she'd settled down with her back against the barn with Travis next to her.

"You know, looking at this field, it reminds me of my Elementary School field. It's refreshing. I had some of the best times of my life there." Travis raised an eyebrow at Tamara's sudden openess but he didn't question it.

"Why was Elementary the best time of your life?" he asked instead.

"Because Luke was there." She explained. Stretching her arms. "He's my first love." She finished. Travis only let a little 'oh' before looking down at the ground, a little disappointed that she was already in love.

"Is he dead?" he asked insensitively. Tamara looked at him glumly before looking down.

"The truth is, I don't know. He moved to Savannah so I haven't the slightest clue." She answered finally, a little upset. "Do you have anyone dear to you, apart from family?" she asked him.

"It's just been me and Ben for a long time. I think he's the only one left. Even though it doesn't look like it, he's the most important person to me." Travis answered truthfully. Tamara stretched her arms and let out a yawn. She was tired. They all were. As she closed her eyes she leaned her head on Travis's shoulder and drifted off. Travis did so too, after looking at her for a while. He even played with her two plaits.

They missed everything. Mark getting shot, the rest of the group arriving and Lees discovery in the barn. They only broke out of their sleep when the dinner bell went off. Tamara stretched her arms once more and shook Travis in order to wake him up.

"Dinner time." She said quickly before walking off to the house Travis following behind. Everyone had already settled apart from Lee who had excused himself for the toilet. Everyone was excited, it was the first proper meal anyone had in ages. Larry and Duck were the most ecstatic. Tamara looked around the nicely set table, brightened up by everyone's happiness.

Suddenly Lee stormed down the stairs, he was desperate to get something off his chest. He stood in the doorway, hunkered over, trying to catch his breath.

"Clementine! NO!" he shouted, effectively stopping the little girl from digesting Mark. A simontaneous 'huh' came from everyone in the room.

"Lee, Jesus man. Did you find something?" Kenny questioned.

"Sit your ass down Lee, this lady has made you a meal." Larry ordered.

"Yeah Lee. What's gotten into you?" Lilly agreed with her father.

"He just had a start." Brenda said, trying to justify things.

"He could use some god-damn manners." Larry gruffed.

"You're eating HUMAN meat!" Lee managed to say, so many options going through his head. Another simontaneous 'that's crazy' escaped everyone's mouth.

"You're scaring the kids Lee." Kenny warned, wanting Lee to explain things. Tamara stared at Lee wide-eyed, scared for what's going to happen next.

"Holy shit… Just think about it guys, we're at a dairy, not a ranch." Travis said, trying to make things easier to understand. Eveyone widened their eyes in realization.

"It's true." Brenda confessed, looking down at her plate.

"Everything could've turned out okay for you folks." Danny said mysteriously, shaking his head. Tamara instanly shot up, Travis soon after.

"We are walking out of here." She demanded. She reached for Travis's pocket, where he kept the handgun. She retrieved the weapon and pointed it at Andy, only to have Danny bring out his rifle and Andy to bring out his pistol. Two guns were pointed at the teens.

"How about no." Danny said, his voice like a moster. The St. Johns were monsters. Andy pulled up Clementine by the hair and put his gun to her head. Lee was just about to reach out to her when the butt of Danny's rifle connected with his face. Lee passed out on the floor leaving everyone defenseless. Tamara just dropped her weapon. There was no use for it. It couldn't do anything for it was a piece of cleverly constructed metal. Everyone was rounded up like sheep by the dairy farmers. They were shoved into a meat locker and the door was locked behind them. Kenny, Lilly, Larry, Lee, Travis, Tamara and Clementine were trapped in one tiny room like animals. Larry pounded at the door whilst shouting all sorts of abuse whils Lilly threw in corner, constantly telling her dad to calm down. Lee was still passed out on the floor. Travis and Tamara sat in a corner, his arm around her shoulders as she sat there. Emotionless and motionless.

Larry clutched his chest in agony. A heart attack form stress. He collapsed to the ground, his dughter Lilly shouting his name. Lee was now consious. Lilly proceeded to give him all the medical treatment she could do without drugs.

"Is he dead?" Kenny asked, not caring for Larry's well being, just his own. The way he saw things is just to kill. Kill Larry.

"HE'S NOT DEAD!" Lilly shouted. She needed help and fast. Tamara's face sunk between her knees. She knew what kind of man Kenny was. He was going to kill Larry and nothing Lee or anyone else could do would change his mind.

"Because if he's dead…" Kenny continued on. He looked at Lee. "You know what has to happen Lee. You saw that poor bastard at the Motel. How fast he turned."

"What are you saying?" she insisted for she knew what was going through Kenny's mind.

"I'm really sorry Lilly. But in a few minutes we're going to be locked in a room with a 6-foot four, 300 pound, seriously pissed off dead guy!" Kenny said, as if measurements mattered.

"FUCK YOU! We can bring him back, Lee!" Lilly said hoarsley. For some reason all these decisions boiled down to Lee, no one else, just Lee.

"We'll mourn him later, but right now we have to keep him form comin' back!" Kenny said, regarding Larry as already dead.

"Nooo!" Clementine squealed. No eight year old should have to watch this.

"God damnit Kenny! He's not dead!" she insisted even further, trying desparately to persuade him.

"Lilly can still save him!" Lee said, holding onto hope.

"I wish she could. Believe me, I do. But that man is dead. You both know what happens next." Kenny said, as if everyone agreed with him.

"Kenny listen-" he was cut off by Kenny.

"Don't you think I forgot about what you said at the drugstore. When you all though Duck was bittne. I'm just doing the same thing except Duck wasn't bitten, and we know this guy's not going to make it. Remember what Travis said. Gotta destroy the brain." Kenny said, a page ahead, in his own book, of everyone. It was another choice for Lee. Both sides begging for the man's help. It was up to Lee and Lee alone.

"You're right Kenny, let's get this over with." Lee sighed. He chose to take a life.

"YOU FUCKING MONSTERS!" Lilly screeched. Tamara just turned her head from the scene, not wanting to witness another murder in the same day. Travis held her even tighter, he was afraid too.

"I don't want to see!" Clementine squeaked before running up to a wall, shutting her eyes tightly. Lilly protested against the other's decision but it was final. Kenny picked up a salt lick and slammed it onto Larrys head as the man took a breath. He was alive.

The next job was to find a way to gey out. That involved Clementine going through a vent to open the door on the other side, which was successful. Lee went out of the locker with Kenny to scout the place. In the slaughter house they picked up al sorts of useful weapons, good for brawling. Travis and Tamara just sat there, not sure of what to think. Just there in eachothers arms. Time went by, some shouts came from the barn but that didn't motivate them enough to move. It was only when they heard a gunshot did they think to move. They wondered into the barn to see Danny trapped in a bear trap. Ironic. Same thing Mr Parker was trapped in. Travis realized that and spat on his face.

When they left the barn they saw Lee punching Andy's face with the rest of the group just watching. Just watching, him. Judging him. Maybe Lee wasn't as good as a man everyone thought he was. The teens joined the group and just stood and watched. Ben looked worried for Travis as he had a blank look on his face. Tamara was empty too. Nobody could take back what happened today, _nobody. _

"They're getting in." Tamara managed to say as she observed the walkers. Lilly gave one last look at her fathers death bed before moving on. It had been a rough day for everyone, her especially.

The three teens walking in silence on the way back to the Motor Inn. Not until they saw the station wagon. Lee stealthily walked up to the car only to find it was abandoned. He took the keys to stop it from beeping. Duck checked out the back to discover supplies. A jackpot. Full of supplies that could last a good ong while. Clementine, Lee and Tamara stood back and watched the rest of the group take the supplies.

"We're monsters. All of us. We are losing our humanity. I witnessed two men kill a man just so he didn't turn. They didn't know if he was dead. But I saw that man take a breath just before that salt lick dropped on his head. We're monsters. By taking this food we probably just killed a family. I hope you're happy. Kenny, Lee." Tamara preached. Everyone had stopped what they were doing to listen to what she was saying. Her eyes were dead but her words were meaningful. What had become of the group from The Motor Inn?


	5. Inappropriate places

_She was out on her usual syphoning trip, stealing supplies from bandit camps. That's how she'd survived by herself for so long. Scavenging whatever she could get her hands on. She sat on branch of tree, feeding on an apple she stole when a crossbow caught her eye. She looked around to see if anyone was within sight before slipping down a tree. She inspected the weapon to see if there was any damage._

_Without warning, a bandit yanked onto the girl's braids, forcing her to face him. She tried to struggle, but didn't dare to make a noise. Noise attracts walkers or bandits, none of which are favourable. Besides, there was no one to look out for her anyway. The fucker pinned her to a tree and slid his hand down her thigh before sliding his hand up her shirt. She spat in his face, attempting to stun him. That only earned her a slap. As a last attempt, she kicked him in the balls before slinging the crossbow and a quiver over her shoulder and bolting._

_She heard him whistle and before long arrows were coming for her from all directions, each shot wanting her dead .But she just kept on running. Nothing was stopping her until she reached The Motor Inn._

The bond between Doug and Tamara had grown to something like daughter and father. Kenny and Lee were making their usual run into the city of Macon, gathering any supplies they could. From medicine to weaponry, anything helps.

She let out a yawn and rubbed her eyes. She had just awoke from a nightmare free sleep. Something she hadn't had in a long time. She slid out of bed and touched the door knob twice. OCD; A very minor case, but still there. She opened the door to see Ben up on watch again. He was up there every morning just staring into space.

"Morning Ben." She greeted whilst climbing on top of the RV. He just gave her a blank look before staring out into the forest.

"Have you ever done anything you regret?" He spoke finally. "Something you've done that you can't ever take back?" He continued absent mindedly.

"I've killed." She said remorsefully. Ben just stared into her eyes, trying to see if she was joking. "Don't judge me for it. The bandit was raping a 12 year old girl, how else could I react?" She continued bitterly.

"I-I don't know." He stuttered, raising his hands defensively. A door swung open, followed by a few more. Travis, Clem, Lilly, Duck and Katjaa had finally risen from their beds. Tamara gave a friendly wave to Travis as he stretched form a nights rest. Clem was holding a walkie-talkie, pretending to have a talk with her parents. She did this every morning with a bubbly smile on her face. Lilly walked out of her room, took a look around, and stormed back in. Doug was still asleep, he always woke up late.

Tamara suddenly snatched the rifle form Ben and looked down the scope.

"They're back." She stated before climbing down the RV. She hauled open the gates for Kenny and Lee to get in.

"Anything good?" she asked hopefully.

"We managed to pick up a handgun and some ammo." Lee replied.

"Ah, that's good. Mind I have it?" she asked nervously.

"Why would you need it? Don't you already have one?" Lee asked suspiciously.

"I gave my one to Travis and Ben needs one. We all need at least one weapon each." She explained. Lee thought about it for a minute with his arms crossed. He finally handed the gun over to which Tamara gave a smile and a nod.

"Let's go talk to the witch." Kenny said, urging Lee on.

"You go on ahead; I got to check up with Clementine." Lee smiled before moving on to talk to the girl. The usual argument was going on with Kenny and Lilly in her room, Lee was there trying to calm things down. Tamara got back to business with Ben.

"They never seem to stop do they?" She asked him while climbing back up the RV.

"No, not really." Ben shrugged.

"Moving on, look what I got you!" She said, pulling out the gun. Ben eyed the gun up, a look of happiness in his eyes, something that hadn't appeared for a while.

"Thanks!" He said happily before delicately taking the gun from Tamara's hands.

"You may want training with it though. You don't want to be accidentally shooting yourself." She advised him.

"Hey Tam, can I speak to you for a min… In private?" Travis called out in an unusually shy tone.

"Sure, I'll be right there." She smiled before lowering herself from the RV. She climbed up the stairs to the upper floor of to meet Travis. He stood there twirling his black hair, looking like he was about to say something really embarrassing.

"I-uh um I." He stuttered. "I like you." He finally spat out.

"I like you too." She smiled, a little flattered.

"No, no more than like. I love you." He finally managed to say. Tamara shyly reached out to stroke his black straight hair.

"That's very sweet Travis." She thanked him gleefully before giving him a kiss on the cheek. His knees began to give way, causing him to fall on top of Tamara. His hands were in **inappropriate places.** A small gasp escaped two young children.

"That's naughty!" Clementine exclaimed, taking a step back. "I'm telling Lee!" She quickly announced.

"Yeah I'm telling Dad!" Duck gasped before beginning to run off. Tamara quickly grabbed the back of his collar, successfully stopping him.

"No, no it's not what you think!" Travis said quickly, waving his hands in front of his face.

"It was an accident, we weren't doing anything weird." Tamara stepped up, seeing the incapability of Travis.

"Okay, if you say so." Clem said slowly. Something caught Tamara's eye, the doggy bag Lee was holding. She'd seen it before, last night. Ding goes the bell.


	6. What now?

_Tamara got up at the crack of dawn. Such a thing was normal for her because sometimes the depressing thoughts got too much for her. Such things as _'we're just prolonging death, the apocalypse is a good thing, we should all just fucking die' _were common things to race through her mind. She paced around the Motor Inn, looking down at the ground. Suddenly she bumped into something; it felt like a bloodied hoodie of some sort. A squeal came from the mystery person alongside a crashing sound and the shattering of glass._

"_W-who's there?" they said intimidated._

"_It's me Tamara. Is that you Ben?" she recognised his voice. _

"_Yeah it's me." He said in a calmer voice._

"_What are you doing out here?" she asked him. She heard something crackle in his hand. It sounded like a __**doggie bag**__._

"_I-I needed to pee." He said in an uncertain tone. '_Obvious lie.'_ Tamara thought but did not voice. "What are you doing?" he asked her out of curiosity._

"_I'm doing stuff Ben, things." She half joked._

"_Very detailed." He said sarcastically. "But in all seriousness, what are you doing?" he asked again._

"_I have OCD, I have pills but I need to use them sparingly. Sometimes, when the voices in my head get too strong, I have to wake up and pace around The Motor Inn." She replied._

"_Oh, um, I'm sorry." He apologized awkwardly._

"_No need to apologize Ben." She said dismissively. "I'll see your around." She said before turning away._

"_Wait!" he called out, gripping onto her hand. "Promise, not to tell anyone about this." He begged. She turned around and narrowed her eyes at him. She felt a sudden urge to kiss him. That was the OCD talking. She put all her might into not doing it, but to no avail. She quickly grabbed his hand and kissed it. He flinched at the touch and squeaked._

"_Sorry. That's another trait of the OCD" she said, scratching the back of her head. "I'll keep it a secret, for now." She said before walking back to her room._

"YOU DON'T FUCKING STEAL FROM US!" A man bellowed. Tamara's eyes widened at the same time as Travis's. They both knew that voice for it was Travis's brother and the man who sexually assaulted Tamara.

"You three, go down the stairs with your hands up, Travis, look after the kids." She ordered.

"But, what about you?" he asked, worried about what she was going to do.

"I've got shit to take care of." She said darkly. Travis mouthed something to her with tears in his eyes. She didn't get what he said but nodded anyway. Travis placed his hands on the two children's backs, urging them to move forward. He also told them to put their hands up. She watched them walk down the stairs before sliding down the back of the balcony. She was lucky, her room was the corner one so it easy to get her stuff. She grabbed her crossbow and rucksack before returning back up. She looked down her scope to Travis talking to the man who had shouted. '_Does he know him?_' she asked herself '_It doesn't matter because he's a dead man._' She replied to her own question. Everyone was on their knees with their hands on their head, waiting for their life to be taken. Lee and Lilly emerged from a room with their hands up. It seemed as if Lee was trying to reach a deal.

"Hold it asshole!" the bandit yelled.

"Take it easy…" Lee said, trying to calm the situation.

"We have more supplies. We can keep the deal going." Lilly said.

"Too late shithead! We ain't givin' second chances!" The bandit yelled stubbornly. Travis sat there crying.

"It was a mix up. We'll make it worth your while!" Lee said.

"… I'm listenin'" The bandit replied.

"We'll leave you everything. Just let us walk out of here." Lee replied, preparing to back down without a fight.

"So you can try to pay US a little visit later? Fuck that!" The bandit denied, progressively getting angrier. "All right, I've had enough of this shit. Drew, take these mother-" Travis's brother was cut off with an arrow splicing through his brain. The raven haired teen gasped, he never was the best brother or the kindest, no certainly not but family is family especially in these dark times.

"CHRIST!" one of the other bandits shouted. Tamara lowered her crossbow and smirked.

"Sweet revenge." She muttered to herself. Doug noticed and handgun on the floor and picket it up. He aimed at one of the bandits, a lady, closed his eyes and squeezed the trigger. He fired two shots between the eyes before his clip was empty, he ran away to meet with Ben and Travis. Lee shot another one but unfortunately the other got away. The straggler whistled, calling over an army of bandits. Shouts came from the forest, whilst the people of The Motor Inn took cover behind anything they could find. Ben tried to make a run for the RV but a shotgun bullet just missed his face, causing him to fall over and scramble back to cover. He sat with Travis and Doug as they waited for Lee's instructions. Kenny and Lilly were inside the RV probably having a dispute over the situation. Meanwhile, Tamara stood on the balcony, shooting as many bandits as she could. Her head suddenly began to hurt; she fell to her knees clutching her forehead. '_Shit, need to get to the RV, need to sit down.' _She thought to herself. She peered over the edge of the balcony to see Lee clearing the way for Doug and the others. She quickly ducked and ran down the stairs to join them. Once the path was clear they dashed for the RV.

"Man you saved our asses." Ben thanked Lee before getting inside.

"What the fuck Tamara?" Travis shouted at her. A little hurt by his tone she raised her hand in defence, whilst giving him a confused stare.

"Don't tell me you don't know what you did. You just straight up murdered my brother!" he shouted even louder, tears starting to form in his eyes.

"Travis, I can't argue with you now…" She said drowsily. The panic was becoming too much. She needed that reminded her of home, anything. She clutched onto the sides of her head and curled up into a ball.

"What, has the guilt caught up with you?" He said bitterly. Ben stared at his angry friend, shaking his head. Now everyone was in the RV and ready to go. Doug ran out to fix some things before dashing back in.

"Shut… Up Travis." She said, trying to block him out.

"Can you two have this argument later? We have more important things to discuss." Lilly butted in. She gave a scornful look around everyone.

"We need to find out why this happened." She declared.

"Nobody died. We're okay, right? Katjaa you're okay, right?" Doug said, trying to be optimistic about things.

"We just lost everything." Lilly stated, a little bit of anger in her voice.

"But we have our health!" Doug argued. It wasn't normal for him to be so angry and worked up. He was normally quiet during arguments.

"Kat's head is split open!" Kenny shouted down the RV.

"I'm fine!" she defended herself. Screeching came from the girl who was curled up in the corner. Everyone turned to look at her.

"What the fuck is up with her?" Travis asked in disgust. Bens eyes widened in realisation. He thought back to two nights before where he bumped into Tamara.

"It's not your OCD is it?" Ben asked. She could only give a slight nod. "Where are your pills?" he asked another question. She pointed to her bag. "Okay, I'm going to get them." He confirmed before walking over to the table.

"Don't forget, I'm not done with you." Lilly warned before letting him go. She continued back to her rant. "Somebody caused this." She said gravely. Ben had found the pills and was making his way to Tamara.

"How many?" he asked her. She just put up two fingers. "O-okay." He sat down next to her and put his hand on her back. She snuggled into his chest for comfort as she tried to hold back the screams. Travis glared the two with anger and jealousy boiling in his eyes. '_So just because I shouted at you, you have to go all lovey-dovey with Ben? Dumb bitch._' He thought to himself but quickly shrugged it off.

"Settle down back there; the bandits have had our number for weeks." Kenny said.

"This is different." She turned to look at Lee. "Someone was working with them, whoever it was, was slipping them our meds. They didn't get their last package so the attacked." Lilly stated her theory to everyone. Now Tamara could think straight she realised something. It was Ben. The doggie bag, the sneaking out at night. She didn't blame him though; she doesn't see things that way.

"Calm down back there! That's nuts!" Kenny dismissed.

"Yeah, Kenny's right!" Travis fought back.

"Lee found a bag of supplies hidden outside the wall." Lilly stated the facts.

"It's true." Lee confirmed. Lilly looked from Travis to Ben and back again.

"So, Travis. Have anything to say?" she spat at him.

"Fuck you Lilly! It wasn't me!" He retorted confidently.

"You seemed to have close relations with the leader though." She scowled.

"He was my brother." Travis stated stubbornly. He gave a quick evil look to Tamara before looking back to Lilly.

"Gives me all the more reason to think you're a plant." She reasoned with him.

"Lilly, leave him alone. We need to think about this logically!" Doug spoke up.

"Logically? The new guy, who could've easily been one of them, AND is related to one of them." Lilly fought back.

"But Lilly, the situation in which Ben and Travis contradicts your sentence. Their teacher got stuck in a bear trap! I don't think even bandits would throw away an able body!" Doug replied in a harsh tone.

"You think I would be under some people's wing. He may have been my brother, but he killed my classmates!" Travis defended himself.

"Oh so now he's a bad guy? Were you hoping that he'd kill all of us so you could join him?" she mocked Travis.

"Lilly come on." Doug said, trying to calm down the situation.

"You're a broken bitch Lilly!" Travis insulted her.

"Chill out back there." Kenny said, for the argument was making it harder to drive.

"I know I don't get wrapped up in the politics around here, but we really need to think before we start stringing somebody up!" Doug exclaimed.

"Doug, I appreciate your concern but we have all the evidence we need." Lilly put him down.

"What evidence?" Tamara asked, feeling a lot better before.

"No, not here. But Lee found the meds, we found an entire signalling system, chalk—"

"And that proves it's Travis, huh?" Tamara cut Lilly off.

"I can fight my own battles!" Travis shouted, refusing Tamara's help.

"Really? Because it seems like you're losing this one." She shouted back.

"Can we stay on topic pl-"Lilly was cut by Kenny driving straight into a walker.

"SHIT!" Kenny panicked.

"What's going on up there?" Lilly asked.

"I hit something. We gotta stop." Kenny replied.

"Alright well, we can deal with this now then." She said gravely. She had something dangerous up her sleeve.

"Kenny, is it safe?" Lee asked, taking precautions.

"Should be." Kenny replied, unsure about his answer.

"Everybody out!" Lilly ordered, not caring if there was a herd of walkers outside. The group exited the RV, waiting for further instructions. Lilly took a look around the front of the RV and assessed the damage. She told Kenny what had happened. A walker had got itself tangled in the underside of the vehicle.

"You know what we shouldn't just kick you out. We should what everyone else thinks." Lilly expressed.

"I think you should think through this. Lilly, by kicking out Travis you're practically killing him for a crime we don't even know he committed." Tamara tried to reason with her.

"Yeah, we can't just kick him out, even if he was the culprit. Would you like it to happen to you?" Ben agreed with Tamara.

"Ugh, this dumb fuck walker!" Kenny shouted, trying to divert the argument.

"You okay over there?" Lee asked, a little concerned about everyone's situation.

"Travis I think you have no other options here. It being you is our strongest bet." Lilly asserted.

"Why don't you just leave me the fuck alone." Travis spat back at her. His eyes were dark; he truly was pissed at her. He was repressing impulses to hit Lilly with all his strength. Ben knew that expression, he'd seen it many times, whether a teacher or a student. Sometimes even a little child.

"Travis, I think you should calm down." Ben and Tamara said simultaneously. He shot a dirty look at them before returning his focus on Lilly.

"This is about trust and I've NEVER trusted you!" Lilly yelled at the boy.

"That's because you're a paranoid bitch!" Travis yelled back. "You act like you're tough shit, but really you're just a scared little lamb!" He continued.

"Now what the fucks the problem?" Kenny said, a little relived that the walker was dealt with. Doug turned to look at Kenny before looking back to Lilly. The woman pulled her gun out of the back of jeans. Doug gripped onto Travis's arm and pulled him away, a gunshot fired. An accidental death. Tamara fell to her knees in shock. She killed Doug, Lilly killed Doug! Travis stood back in horror, a man's life was given to save his. A look of guilt was spread across his face.

"Y-you j-just killed him?" Tamara stuttered, tears streaming down her face. She pinned Lilly to the side of the RV, her arm against Lilly's throat. She shouted all sorts of abuse at the woman whilst choking her. It took Ben and Travis's strength to pull her off, if they hadn't intervened Tamara would've went for the kill. She stood back, anger still in her eyes watching for what Lee was going to do.

"KENNY what's happening!?" Katjaa screeched from the RV.

"Keep Duck away from the windows. Jesus Christ!" Kenny yelled back. "Get in, we're leaving this crazy bitch!" he ordered Lee.

"She's NOT coming with us!" Tamara demanded before angrily walking into the RV. "We can't have a murderer with us!" she shouted from inside the vehicle. Lee stood there, lost in thought; after all he was deciding the fate of a person.

"Leave her Lee!" Travis stated before walking back into the RV. He sat next to Tamara but they didn't talk. Ben was the next one to come in and sat next to Travis. Tamara looked at Ben, trying hard not to blame him for what had happened to Doug. 'I can't blame him; he didn't know or want this to happen. The only one I can blame is Lilly.' She thought to herself. Ben's face was in his hands, a gesture he usually used when negative emotions come over him.

"Hey man, are you alright?" Travis asked his friend.

"I-I don't know what to think…" Ben replied darkly. Lee and Kenny walked into the RV and closed the door. Lilly wasn't coming. Kenny started up the RV and the group were on the road again.

"Hey Tamara, I have a question. What did my brother do to you?" Travis asked. He was ready to forgive her if she gave a good enough reason.

"He sexually assaulted me or rather raped me and then called all of his bandit friends to try and kill me." She said bluntly.

"Oh." He said solemnly, choosing his next words. "I'm sorry for yelling at you." He apologised. "It's just, I told you, well mouthed to you that he was my brother and you nodded to it. I thought you got what I said but it turns out you didn't." he explained.

"Yeah, that was a fault on my part." She admitted. She rested her head on his shoulder and drifter off to sleep.

She awoke with a stretch but hit her hand on something. She opened her eyes to see Travis rubbing his nose and Ben still fast asleep.

"Now we gotta deal with this." She barely heard Kenny say. She looked out the front mirror to see a freighter caught in a crash. There was no way around it, unless you wanted to walk on foot. What now?


End file.
